Inexpensive, reusable ice bags have become a popular item for the treatment of patients requiring the application of hot or cold temperatures to localized areas, such as in the treatment of swelling and muscle tears. As such, these products provide a heat exchange from or to the area being treated, see Clarizio, U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,210, Hubbard, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,385,950; Turner, British Patent Specification 1 383 536; and European Patent Application Abstract 0162583 all of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Clarizio discloses an early commercial plastic bag, made from a thermoplastic film, such as polyethylene, and includes a neck having an opening for receiving hot or cold substances. The bag may include a single layer of imitation chamois, cellucotton, or other material, folding around the lower portion of the bag beneath the neck and covering both sides of the bag. The heat sealing die alone is suggested as being satisfactory for sealing this cover to the bag film.
Hubbard, et al., discloses a waterproof polyethylene bag having an outer layer of absorbent material perforated by many tiny apertures. The absorbent material can be sonically welded to the polyethylene envelope. This reference primarily deals with saving polyethylene stock by simultaneously cutting tie strings for two adjoining bags.
Turner discloses a hot or cold pack containing reactive chemicals separated by a thin membrane, which when ruptured, permits the chemicals to mix and create the desired temperature effect. This reference discloses that the outer layer of the pack can include moisture-absorbent material.
The European abstract refers to a compress having a polyethylene plastic sack covered with a fabric of knitted polyester. The compress can be provided with a bandage for securing it to a patient.
While in the main, these prior art heat exchange bags provide a viable means for applying ice or hot fluids to localized areas of a patient, there remains a need for a less expensive and more efficiently produced ice bag and a method of manufacturing such bags which reduces the number of costly manual steps.